Professional Dissertations DMin

Date of Award

2004

Document Type

Project Report

Degree Name

Doctor of Ministry

College

Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary

Program

Doctor of Ministry DMin

First Advisor

Bruce L. Bauer

Second Advisor

Gorden R. Doss

Third Advisor

Trevor O'Reggio

Abstract

Problem

The task of this dissertation was to discover the reasons for the poor financial strength and to develop stewardship workshops to promote spiritual growth and sound financial performance in the churches of the South Ghana Conference. Since its organization in 1988, the South Ghana Conference has not experienced consistent growth in giving. By year-end 2001 it had a baptized membership of 41,747 with 101 organized churches and 235 companies. During the same period, the annual tithe was US$479,674 with a tithe per capita of US$12.18. However, there is wide spread suspicion that many return a partial tithe. In spite o f these challenges, no preliminary research was undertaken to determine factors that hinder financial growth in the South Ghana Conference. Therefore, a study of giving patterns is necessary to determine factors that hinder growth in giving, followed by the designing of a strategy to meet the challenges.

Method

In an attempt to find a way in which the South Ghana Conference could be helped to experience growth , this study looked carefully at two things: (1) Ghana’s historical background, and (2) Ghana’s giving patterns, as well as the relationship between spiritual growth and giving. A questionnaire was administered to fifty-six members of eighteen selected churches. The results of the field survey were organized into tables giving frequencies and percentages of the responses. The data were analyzed and conclusions drawn based on the responses. The final results of the field survey showed that the following issues hinder growth in giving and must be attended to if the South Ghana Conference is to experience healthy growth in giving: poor giving of tithes and offerings, and lack of consistent church attendance. Based on the analysis of the field surveys, a stewardship seminar on spirituality and giving is suggested to enable the church to address factors hindering growth in giving.

Conclusion

The dissertation concludes with specific recommendations to the leaders of the union, conferences, Valley View University, districts, and the local churches.

Subject Area

Christian Stewardship; Tithes; Seventh-day Adventists--Finance; Seventh-day Adventists--Ghana; South Ghana Conference of Seventh-day Adventists

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.

DOI

https://dx.doi.org/10.32597/dmin/559

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